Pyotr Demianovich Ouspenskii - The Symbolism Of The Tarot (218.0 Kb)

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Born in 1878, Pyotr Demianovich Ouspenskii in Moscow, Russia, Ouspensky was to become one of the most influential philosophers of his day. Somewhere along the way, he developed an interest in the Tarot, as have many philosophers down through the centuries, and wrote this book of Tarot Meditations. As are all of the books in this series, The Symbolism of the Tarot has become an old classic and is often quoted in books on Tarot and the occult (hidden) down to the present day. I have faithfully copied this book in its original ... More >>>

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Born in 1878, Pyotr Demianovich Ouspenskii in Moscow, Russia, Ouspensky was to become one of the most influential philosophers of his day. Somewhere along the way, he developed an interest in the Tarot, as have many philosophers down through the centuries, and wrote this book of Tarot Meditations. As are all of the books in this series, The Symbolism of the Tarot has become an old classic and is often quoted in books on Tarot and the occult (hidden) down to the present day. I have faithfully copied this book in its original content.

You will see many words spelled in turn of the 20th century English spellings, and a few out-and-out misspellings. In the interest of giving you the book in its original content, I've made no attempt to edit it in any way. This is the way it was written and this is the way I'm giving it to you.

WHAT IS THE TAROT?

"No study of occult philosophy is possible without an acquaintance with symbolism, for if the words occultism and symbolism are correctly used, they mean almost one and the same thing. Symbolism cannot be learned as one learns to build bridges or speak a foreign language, and for the interpretation of symbols a special cast of mind is necessary in addition to knowledge, special faculties, the power of creative thought and a developed imagination are required. One who understands the use of symbolism in the arts, knows, in a general way, what is meant by occult symbolism. But even then a special training of the mind is necessary, in order to comprehend the "language of the Initiates", and to express in this language the intuitions as they arise." P. D. Ouspensky

The entire basis of Tarot is in its symbols and how they interact with the mind. This book is how they interacted with the mind of P. D. Ouspensky! It will make an invaluable addition to your Tarot-study collection !

Ouspensky has a reputation for his expositions of the early work of the Greek-Armenian teacher of esoteric doctrine George Gurdjieff, whom he met in Moscow in 1915. He was associated with the ideas and practices originating with Gurdjieff from then on. In 1924, he separated from Gurdjieff personally, and some, Rodney Collin among others, say that he finally gave up the (Gurdjieff) "system" that he had shared with people for 25 years in England and the United States, but his own recorded words on the subject ("A Record of Meetings," published posthumously) do not clearly endorse this judgement nor does Ouspensky's emphasis on "you must make a new beginning" after confessing "I've left the system"; all this happened in Lyne Place, Surrey, England in 1947, just before his demise. While lecturing in London in 1924 he announced that he would continue independently the way he began in 1921. All in all, Ouspensky studied the Gurdjieff System directly under Gurdjieff's own supervision for a period of ten years, from 1915 to 1924. Ouspenky's book In Search of the Miraculous is a recounting of what Ouspensky learned from Gurdjieff in those years between 1915 and 1924.

Fourth Way

There are three recognized ways of self-development generally known in esoteric circles. These are the Way of the Fakir, dealing exclusively with the physical body, the Way of the Monk, dealing with the emotions, and the Way of the Yogi, dealing with the mind. What is common about the three ways is that they demand complete seclusion from the world. According to Gurdjieff, there is a Fourth Way which does not demand its followers to abandon the world. The work of self-development takes place right in the midst of ordinary life. Gurdjieff called his system a school of the Fourth Way where a person learns to work in harmony with his physical body, emotions and mind. Ouspensky picked up this idea and continued his own school along this line.

P.D. Ouspensky made the term "Fourth Way" and its use central to his own teaching of the ideas of Gurdjieff. He greatly focused on Fourth Way schools and their existence throughout history.

Students

Some of his students included, among others:

* Rodney Collin

* Maurice Nicoll

* Kenneth Walker

* Aldous Huxley

Self-remembering

Ouspensky personally confessed the difficulties he was experiencing with self-remembering, a technique to which he had been introduced by Gurdjieff himself. Gurdjieff explained to him this was the missing link to everything else. While in Russia, Ouspensky himself experimented with the technique with a certain degree of success and in his lectures in London and America, he emphasized its practice. The technique requires a division of attention, so that a person not only pays attention to what is going on in the exterior world but also in the interior. The psychiatrist Dr. Sjoernval who was also a follower of Gurdjieff in Russia mentioned to Ouspensky that this was what professor Wundt meant by apperception. Ouspensky refused to believe it. Gurdjieff explained the Rosicrucian principle that in order to bring about a result or manifestation, three things are necessary. With self-remembering and self-observation two things are present. The third one is explained by Ouspensky in his tract on Conscience: it is the non-expression of negative emotions.